kurt0811

Well, I've finally reached the point where I can make a classic 911 a part of our family ( although my wife would prefer new windows . This site has been invaluable for education, and entertaining as well. But I feel I need some professional help in making a selection, and knowing what's "good". My dilemma is this...I know what I want: '87-'89 911 cabriolet, red (althougth the Venetian Blue is very nice). I've seen a lot of posts saying mileage is not as important as overall condition, but I've got to be honest, anything over 100K makes me nervous. And some cars I've seen have had new trannys or engine rebuilds around 70-80k. Since I am limited in what I want, I am pretty certain I will have to find my car via the internet, and purchase it long distance. I know a PPI is a necessity, but when do I get to that point? All the cars I've seen online look very nice, and I could spend a fortune doing PPIs on all the ones I like. Any suggestions on narrowing down the field? Judging from the cars I've seen in person, people tend to overestimate the condition of the cars in their descriptions. And again, since my wife could certainly find a better use of the money, the budget is not unlimited. Help?

Amber Gramps

I just happen to own the perfect car for you.

You can't have her, but she does have a sister.

Welcome to Rennlist.

rusnak

If you want a good condition 911 cab from the late 80s with low mileage, then I think the online forums are probably NOT the place for leads. This may seem counterintuitive, but I think you are looking for a person who is not a car nut so much. Someone who bought the car more to own it than to drive it. Someone who is not poor. If I were to channel your prototypical seller, it would be a professional like a doctor or lawyer or accountant, probably in their 70s right now, not too swift with a computer, and has a reliable and trusted mechanic.

I'd start calling the Porsche mechanics or let people know to be on the lookout. Online searching is faster and more convenient, but you don't find the great cars that way. See if you can place a wtb ad on the online forums as a backup, to cover all bases. You might try Yahoo or eVilbay, but generally you see a lot more junk on these sites than good cars.

rusnak

Oh yes. DB's cab is Venetian Blue. I think that car is absolutely gorgeous.

Amber Gramps

Rusnak is right, As I was looking for mine I was very discouraged. I looked at 25 cars that were all used up. Seats, carpets, trans, and horrific engine mods all really shrank the pool of potential cars. I got up early one saturday, checked autotrader, saw an add that had just posted that morning, drove down to the broker that had the car. What I find? ......the most amazing car I had ever seen in my life.

Perfect, No.... Unmolested, yes

Mine.....Ohio State math professor and ball coach, original owner, 54,000 miles without as much as a restitch job on the steering wheel.

P.S. see my sig below

kurt0811

Love your car DB. It sounds as if you only looked at cars near you. Any thoughts on long distance purchases? Or should I just bide my time and wait for a local offering to pop up?

dshepp806

I love Doug's color, too.


All I can say is PPI required from a REAL Porsche shop...wherever you may shop.

Doyle

TA911-64

I always go back to the same thought. Search...and search again. The right one will find YOU. It did for me 3 times over 30 years. You'll just know it.

Helios59

Kurt, you probably know this, but there are two pretty well known classic Porsche dealerships in Pennsylvania, AIC and Holt Motorsports.

I've spoken with both owners on the phone and also spend lots of time on their sites. They have some nice, nice cars. Truspeed in Southern California also has a fine selection.

Good luck with your search.

911vet

I don't know if I can help you, but I was in your position not long ago. I found my car on Autotrader at a dealership in Atlanta (I live in Ohio). It had 113K miles on it and was a ONE OWNER car. They still had the original title from the dealership but no service records at all.

The car looked perfect in the pictures. You are already aware that pictures will significantly over-represent the car. When I picked mine up, I felt a horrible wave of disappointment... not because it was so bad, but because it was not the perfect interior I had in my mind. If you go in knowing it isn't as good as the pictures, you'll be ok.

I had a PPI done, a friend-of-a-friend did a test drive, and I bought it sight-unseen.

The car has been great. I am extremely happy with it.

You've heard it before but it is worthy of repeating: Every 911 is a $25K car. You can spend it up front, or you can spend it soon. Rarely later.

Mine was $16,700 two years ago (during the time the prices were still going up). The PPI missed the bad clutch. I put $6000 in it quick (not including the race seats, harnesses).

It's very likely that no matter what you get, you're going to put a few thousand dollars in it soon after purchase. Unless they just did an engine rebuild, new clutch, and everything else. And that's unlikely.

I didn't limit myself to 100K and I'm not sure I think it matters. The age of the rubber seems to be as much of an issue as miles. Many of the issues I've had are related to old rubber (the rubber went out in the clutch, rubber ruptured on the fuel lines, etc). So even if it has 50K miles, it's still 22 years old. And there seems to be no definite rhyme or reason to when/if the valve guides are gonna start leaking.

I don't think I told you anything you don't already know. But it was my experience. I never thought I'd buy a car without test driving it first. But I just didn't find what I wanted locally. When I saw this one, something told me "that's the car." I'll be honest, when I arrived in Atlanta and saw it, my first impression was disappointment. Like I said - the car didn't look bad... it just didn't look like the picture in my mind.

Eventually, I did re-dye the interior. And now it looks BETTER than the pictures

I tell every potential buyer the same thing: Don't hurry, but don't wait. You won't regret getting a 911. Until you have one, it's hard to appreciate the joy one can bring.

Good luck. And, by the way, your choice of a G50 Cabriolet... dude, you've got good taste

Ed Hughes

Glad you came to your senses and are not looking for a bluuueeee cab; ooooh.

As you know, there are a lot of opinions on whether high mileage is OK. You stated you've seen cars that have rebuilt trannys and engines at 70 or 80K. That is true. So, keep in mind that if you find "the car", and it only has 60K, you MAY be only 10K away from problems.....

If I didn't screw up at the track and miss a shift, my 130K engine would've easily gone another 130K, it was that clean inside.

But, it is the car you lust after, so do what you think is right. I think that you look and see what's out there. If it looks to be what you like/want, and the price is one you agree on, then move forward contingent on the PPI coming in.

I think you'll know when it is the right car.

rusnak

I don't know at all if my story will help anyone. But here goes.

I found mine after selling a 911SC (I'll skip that story) and I was going to use the cash toward another 911. I kissed many toads figuratively speaking. I found an ad on Yahoo of all places. It said Silver Blue, audiophile sound sytem, perfect running engine, blah blah. I drove six hours to Arcata, California to look at it. The dude said he was 4 hours north of Sacramento. I thought the state ran out of room at two hours past Sacramento. Anyway, I get there 4 hours past Sacramento, and the car is filthy. There must have been 30 pounds of mud underneath the car, and another 10 pounds on top. I listenend to the motor, crawled underneath, inspected the interior, and came up with a list of things that would need to be replaced. I told the guy I'd have to put 2-3K in the car just to drive it. It had a new paint job, and a fantastic stereo system. It was exactly the color I was looking for, and I knew that mechanically it was very very excellent. I also knew that I would have to stick with it for at least 6-8 months of work to make it the car that I would love as my own.

The guy wanted 18.8K for it. He immediately dropped his price to 16.6K when I presented him my list. I was trying to leave and drive back home when the guy goes "15.5" do you want it or not?!

I bought the car!! I drove home very excited. I came back the next weekend, having flown to San Francisco, then on to Eureka. The guy picked me up in my car, all washed and waxed. It was magnificent looking. It started to rain. I got in my Carrera. It was solid as a tank. I could feel the heavy flywheel spinning back there with all of that mass. The low rumble did not sound like my 911SC with it's raspy scream. I began to drive home after filling up the tank with Chevron premium.

It began to snow as I drove home. I drove home in a Porsche 911 in a blizzard!! The car looked like a brown furry lump as I descended from the mountains. By the time I reached the valley, and drove back through Sacramento toward Fresno, the car was filthy again. But the low rumble and heavy clutch began to grow on me. I loved the sport seats. I loved the heavy steering (the SC had lighter steering input). I loved the cruise control, and the way the car could be left in 5th gear no matter what. I loved the gobs and gobs of torque. By the time I reached home, 6 hrs after I left, it was dark and I had fallen in love with my 911. Oh yes, I did quickly spend 3K on parts. And I power washed at least 40lbs of mud from the underside of the car. I don't regret a single penny that I have spent on the car, and I have probably spent enough to purchase it a second time.

911vet

I did the PPI after I had talked to the seller and felt I was probably going to buy if the PPI was satisfactory. If you aren't ready to buy a particular car, don't spend the money on the PPI.

Also, another issue is who you have do the PPI. It can be a difficult thing. From what I found, most Porsche dealers will not do them (they don't want the liability) and also, many of them know nothing about these cars. The local dealer in Columbus will not even work on our era cars. So a dealership may not be an option.

However, it's likely you can call a dealership and find out who in the area does reliable PPIs on older Porsches. Or go on Rennlist when you find the car you want and see if anyone knows a local shop.

kurt0811

Thanks to everyone for all your info, and I really appreciate the stories. It's nice to know I'm not alone as I wander in the Porsche wilderness. I am anxiously awaiting the book by Peter Zimmerman, it should be here any day now. I think that will allow me to have enough knowledge to at least weed out the undesirable cars. As it is now my brain goes "Porsche, cabriolet, red, must buy now!! Pay no attention to that large area of rust in the doorwell." Did I mention that patience is not in my vocabulary? I am going to contact some area Porsche mechanics, to see if they have any interesting leads. I'd much rather get a car locally, but again, since many of you have done the long distance purchase thing, I'm not quite as nervous as before.

rusnak

kurt, if this is your first air cooled Porsche, then how I envy you. Please....take your time in finding the right 911. It is a lot like finding a wife. But your first drive, and the first days of ownership will stay with you for the rest of your life. The friends that you will make as a result of owning this car are the naturally loyal sort, having stuck with their Porsche through pleasure and pain. You have so much to look forward to.